Saturday, 30 October 2010

The Runaways - really stellar biopic centred two band members of The Runaways, and the casting and performances here are great with Kristen Stewart (Twilight) as Joan Jett and Dakota Fanning (The Twilight Saga: New Moon) as Cherie Currie. I really enjoyed the femme centric nature of the double female protagonist film that embraces the freedom & fun equally alongside the frantic & gritty time and situations.

Can-Con

Chloe - erotic thriller from Atom Egoyan starring Julianne Moore, Amanda Seyfred and Liam Neeson. Lovingly set and featuring Toronto as it's setting and from that perspective along it's fun to watch and point out all the familiar haunts. And the acting and tone is very good too :)

Biggies

Edge of Darkness - Mel Gibson stars in this eeriely different take on vengeance film that's cut from an older cloth that what I think we are used to in a CSI centric crime world.

The Bounty Hunter - couldn't pay me to see this Jennifer Aniston / Gerard Butler ex's and resistant to each others company rom com. Actually, I would watch it if you paid me - but only if you did.

My To See List

The Boys: The Sherman Brother's Story - documentary on songwriters for Disney tunes? Yep. I'm there. Trailers certainly looked charming and I'm looking forward to catching up with this one.

From Paris, With Love - I'ma little surprzied I didn't get out to this action/thriller in the theatre but it looked like it might be just over the edge of brutal. I loved District B13 / Banlieue B13from director Pierre Morel, but found Taken a little too harsh. But, my curiosity is piqued to see what trouble John Travolta and Jonathan Rhys Meyers get up to in this one.

Leap Year - sure the rom com looks extremely predictable but it also looks pretty cute and I love the cast of Amy Adams, Matthew Goode and Adam Scott.

Series

I know I already talked about both of them last month but with late October starts both In Treatment Season 3 and Durham Country Season 3 continue in November with new episodes on HBO Canada.

For the Twi-Hards

Looking to spot Twi-Stars? Along with the aforementioned The Runaways with the ladies of the saga, you can all check out the gents this month in Remember Me starring Robert Pattinson and Valentines' Day starring Taylor Lautner.

Mpix Pick

The Taking of Pellum One Two Three - starring Walther Matthau and Robert Shaw, this is an one absolutely fantastic heist drama centred on a subway train. The film is great overall and it features one of my favourite opening ever as it features the funkiest music that won't ever let you forget it came out in the 1970s.

These are just some of the highlights I've picked out of what is new this month on TMN. They have loads more titles and you can check them out all over at the TMN website.

Friday, 29 October 2010

Welcome to Film Fan Fridays for Friday October 29, 2010! This is one of the few times I'm coming to you from another part of the globe - I'm in San Francisco! Rice a roni! Streetcars! And most importantly my brother's wedding! It's gonna rock.*

In limited release this week we have the new UK comedy Tamara Drewe along with Handsome Harry and for the documentary fans today we have Inside Job today as well as the much loved documentary comedy Winnebago Man which opened on Thursday Oct 28, 2010 at the Lightbox. More limited release titles for Oct 29, 2010 include Aftershock and documentaries Best Worst Movie and You Don't Like the Truth: 4 Days Inside Guantanamo.

In wide release this week we have to completely differently veined film choices for you holiday weekend. My pick would definitely be The Girl Who Kicked the Hornet's Nest / Luftslottet som sprängdes, the third and final film in the Millenium / Men Who Hate Women trilogy and again stars Noomi Rapace as Lisbeth Salander & Michael Nyqvist and Mikael Blomkvist, and is directed by Daniel Alfredson (who directed part 2 The Girl Who Played with Fire / Flickan som lekte med elden), and completes the saga that began with The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo / Män som hatar kvinnor.We alsohave Saw 3D. You saw this one coming didn't you? The puzzle of all puzzles. The Saw's of all Saw's. The seventh Saw. Can you believe we've had 6 of them already? One of year since the original back Saw in 2004. So of course it's in 3D and coming out just before Halloween. And it's apparently the last one - but we've heard that before, haven't we?

Looking for scary film recommendations? There are tons a plenty over at my most recent episode of the Movie Moxie Podcast were I take on the supernatural as a film genre. Check it out here.

Have a great Halloween weekend!

Shannon

Special screenings

Halloween weekend at the Lightbox Oct 29 & 30, 2010A fantastic selection of late night scares and dares come out to play with screenings of Dog Soldiers, The House of the Devil, S&M Man and The Loved Ones along with a Planet of the Vampires & Alien double bill. I highly recommend checking out some of these films, in particular The Loved Ones -it's messed up in all the right ways.See more information on the screenings see here.

LENNONYC (dir: Michael Epstein), documentary centred on John Lennon, Yoko Ono and son Sean during the 1970s in New York City. LENNONYC screens on Wednesday November 3, 2010 at 6:30 and 9:15PM at The Bloor as a part of the monthly Doc Soup screening series by Hot Docs. Check here for more information.

Thursday, 28 October 2010

I love following the People's Choice Awards. I know it feels like an odd fit as I love to chat about Canadian, indie & foreign film, but there's something really fun about watching the (literal) popular vote. And I'm always curious during the show how many folks will have a Sally Field moment.

The People's Choice Awards have a two-tiered voting system. You can vote now in each category for up to 5 nominees and if you don't see your favourite listed you can add your selection under 'Other'. That's pretty sweet, I'm going to have fun adding some of my own options especially in the action star and comedic star cats that only have 3 ladies out of the 12 nominees, although those 3 nominees are up from 0 from last year - woohoo! Hopefully people voiced their opinions and made that happens. I think they could even things out even further by adding Favourite Drama Star and Favourite Horror Star with a majority of women nominees to balance things out. Lots of final girls and drama queens out there!

One huh moment was seeing Edge of Darkness, Inception and Shutter Island fit as Favorite Drama Movie nominees, but for genre categorization they only to action, drama, comedy, family & horror. So, out of those I can see how drama would be a fit even if I don't see how they quite meet the definition. I can see the effects of the genre analysis on the Movie Moxie Podcast is certainly staying on my mind! Actually, the genre film categories of action, drama, comedy, & horror are all new this year - last year they only had Favourite Family Movie and Favourite Movie. Also new this year is Favorite Movie Star Under 25 which I'm shocked I actually know who most of them are! Woot! Other changes from last year include no more Favorite Independent Film, Favorite Breakout Actor, Favorite Breakout Actress and Favorite Franchise categories.

The awards cover movies, TV and music, but I'm only looking at film here and those nominees are listed below. To see all Nominee Selections go here, and don't wait - get your votes in now as the second round of voting begins on November 9, 2010.

Favorite Family Movie Cats & Dogs: The Revenge of Kitty GaloreDespicable MeDiary of a Wimpy KidHow to Train Your DragonThe Karate KidLegends of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'HooleMarmadukePercy Jackson & The Olympians: The Lightning ThiefShrek Forever AfterThe Sorcerer's ApprenticeTooth FairyToy Story 3

Favorite Comedy Movie The Bounty HunterCop OutDate NightDinner For SchmucksEasy AGrown UpsHot Tub Time MachineKillersThe Other GuysSex and the City 2Tyler Perry's Why Did I Get Married Too?Valentine's Day

Wednesday, 27 October 2010

On this weeks episode of the Movie Moxie Podcast Shannon takes a look at the theatrical releases of Paranormal Activity 2, Score: A Hockey Musical and the South Korean action flick The Man From Nowhere. Keeping it spooky just in time for Halloween the genre exploration of the week is Supernatural films. Enjoy!

Supernatural as a Film Genre Show Notes:Shannon's Definition of Supernatural Film: “Supernatural films is a genre that combines the commonplace natural world with supernatural, paranormal or occult showcasing ideas and encounters that which can not be explained with science.”Supernatural as defined by Wikipedia "The supernatural or supranatural (Latin: super, supra "above" + natura "nature") is anything above or beyond what one holds to be natural and exists outside natural law and the observable universe.[1] Science limits its explanations for phenomena to natural explanations, a process known as methodological naturalism, and cannot consider supernatural explanations, as they cannot be investigated empirically."Paranormal as defined by Wikipedia "Paranormal is a general term (coined ca. 1915–1920[1][2]) that designates experiences that lie outside "the range of normal experience or scientific explanation"[3] or that indicates phenomena that are understood to be outside of science's current ability to explain or measure.[1][4] Paranormal phenomena are distinct from certain hypothetical entities, such as dark matter and dark energy, insofar as paranormal phenomena are inconsistent with the world as already understood through empirical observation coupled with scientific methodology"Occult as defined by Wikipedia "The word occult comes from the Latin word occultus (clandestine, hidden, secret), referring to "knowledge of the hidden"2010 Supernatural Films:The Eclipse (2010), The Last Exorcism, Legion, Paranormal Activity 2 and also last weeks release of Hereafter. Charlie St. Cloud has some supernatural elements as well.List of all reviewed supernatural films

Post-recording recommendations from folks: The Others, The Orphanage - both are awesome!

Close but no cigar - not categorically supernatural (But still awesome!):Creatures: Vampires, Werewolves, Zombies, Gollums, Succubi and Aliens.Witches, spells, curses, magic and magick: but I would still recommend: Practical Magic, The Craft, The Covenant and Serpent and the Rainbow.

Thank you for the recommends:Anthony Marco, NapiersNews, GenieSea, Chad Nolan, Cinema Neophyte, John, Kurt, Rob, Marjorie and Jamie for contributing suggestion on Twitter and facebook, and helping me through the mental block to remember Dreamscape!

Tuesday, 26 October 2010

We have a fan-freaking-tastic selection of DVD release for October 26, 2010 to explore!

First up is the hilarious and heartbreaking film The Misfortunates / De helaasheid der dingen, a family drama that someone manages to balance naked cycling with excessing drinking to everyday family life. And all in Flemish. It's a must-see, as it the Italian film I Am Love starring Tilda Swinton. Both are easily on my favourite films of 2010. Also out is The Girl Who Played with Fire / Flickan som lekte med elden which is releasing on DVD just days before the 3rd film of the trilogy hits theatres this Friday. And Carrie & the girls are back to shop & solve their dramas and keep their friendships ticking in Sex and the City 2.

I'm thrilled to see the release of the Irish film Kisses on DVD this week, it's a fascinating drama starring two very young leads who decide to strike out on their own, with amazingly real performances for such young actors. Also out is the highly acclaimed chilling drama Winter's Bone, which I'm anticipated to be a heavy hitter at this years Spirit Awards. We also have Xavier Dolan's (J'ai tué ma mère / I Killed My Mother) latest with Amours Imaginaires / Heartbeats very quickly after it's theatrical release here in Toronto.

Looking for something scary to pick up? One wild card this week is the horror flick on a plane with Altitude, although my pick would be to Criteron's release of House which although I've not seen I've heard such amazing, awestruck and confused reports on that I know I'll have to snag this Japanese 70's flick to check out. If zombies are more your deal than it may be time to catch up with Kevin Tenney's Brain Dead.

For TV on DVD my pick would be Law & Order UK, even at only 13 episodes and drawing inspiration and stories from the American version I still found it to be a very engaging show with fantastic acting from the main cast of Jamie Bamber (Battlestar Gallactica), Bradley Walsh, Ben Daniels and Freema Agyman (Doctor Who).

Feeling nostalgic? Maybe it's time to revisit Back to the Future 25 year Anniversary Trilogy Edition. Holy noodle, has it been 25 years since Back to the Future? Wow. Also out this week is the Criteron edition of Paths of Glory.

Reason to see: Great praise coming out of TIFF'09 & has an awesome quirky tone written all over it

The Misfortunates is a exceptional film that presents us with a compelling family drama with heart & heartbreak combined in a heart beat. Centred on 13 year old Gunther who lives in his grandmothers house along with his boozing father and 3 uncles, where everyday life is so unbelievable with shenanigans that you know this fiction must be laced with truth. And it is, as the film is an adaptation of the novel by Dimitri Verhulst De helaasheid der dingen (literal translation The Shittiness of Things), which was inspired by the author’s childhood experiences. That literal translation of the title speaks volumes to the tone of the film. It doesn't pull any punches when presents the craziness of Gunther's home life, but it's this honesty that makes the film refreshing. It's also very honest about not just the bad but the good as well, as there are benefits to living in zaniness.

That's what makes The Misfortunates so endearing, is it feels true every step of the way. The moments that are awful, are truly awful but when it's good there if a joie de vivre that permeates through the screen and into the heart of the viewer. You want to stay in these lively moments, but the volatile nature of the band of four brothers that is Gunther's father & uncles inevitably break up the fun, and they are a force that you don't want to reckon with. Shifting easily from tone to tone, somehow it balances the outrageousness naked bicycle riding with the colourful interactions to day-to-day life. This creates an environment were we come to believe anything can and will happen. It's an amazing study of the complexity of family, loyalty and dedication while laced beautifully with comedy and tragedy.

The film comes alive with the stellar ensemble cast from the openness of 13 year old Gunther played by Kenneth Vanbaeden to Koen De Graeve who plays his alcoholic father Celle, to the charismatic performance from Johan Heldenbergh as Beefcake. Gilda De Bal is also exception as the matriarch of the Strobbe family, oddly placed in a male-dominated testosterone-filled household where the four brothers reign their world in a bizarre combination of enthusiasm and anarchy.

Quirky, honest and tragic The Misfortunates shows us emotional truths be they gritty or tender. It's an astonishing film that I highly recommend.

DVD Language options:

Audio: Original Flemish or French

Subtitles: English or French

DVD Extras:

Extensive Making-Of (6 parts, 43 minutes) French subtitles

Interview with director Felix Van Groeningen (13 minutes) in French

Booklet: The packaging includes a booklet with an director's note from Felix Van Groeningen and a foreword by Colin Geddes and Katarina Gligorijevic (Toronto based film curators, producers & writers). The director's note and foreword are in both in French and English

Reason to see: Historical film centred on the female philosopher and astronomer Hypatia

Set in 4th century in the city of Alexandria, Agora follows the Hypatia a teacher, philosopher, astronomer and mathematician in a time where philosophy, science and faith collide through changes of power. Different religious and belief system exist, but not side by side in harmony but colliding with each other at every step.

Hypatia believes in power of knowledge and wisdom. Rachel Weisz does an amazing job embodying her with eloquence, vigor and beautiful curiosity in the world and determined strength to solve the mysteries of the universe. It's so exciting to see film centred on a female protagonist who was a philosopher, astronomer and mathematician. And in 391 AD. Wow. What a powerhouse she was.

Powerhouse is a great way to describe the film as a whole, as her journey alone was epic as were time times in and around Alexandria. Also, the film fits the epic definition in several ways including sweeping, gorgeous cinematography that makes each and every shot a thing of beauty. We also are treated to great performance from the cast including a particularly stellar performance from Max Minghella (The Social Network) as Hypatias young slave Davus, who's has his own epic journey that underscores the film. We also get to see great works from Oscar Isaac (Prince John in the 2010 Robin Hood) as the privledged Orestes, Sami Samir as the often scary Cyril.

From a gender perspective, it feels so refreshing to see historical film where a woman in a place of knowledge and privilege is teaching, hypothesizing & problem solving and also not minutely interested in the numerous men who are obviously interested in her. So rare to see this perspective in a historical film and I loved it. Hypatia is also clearly the most intelligent person we encounter and she loves knowledge and thought, genuinely thriving from thinking as if it were nourishment, which I found very inspiring.

It's completely fascinating to see people struggle with and ponder scientific concepts and ideas where we now have what we consider to be the solid truth for those particular problems. I think it's a great way to not only honour the challenges that people went through in the past, but also to remember how things can change over time and be open to change in the current as the world inevitably will be different in the future. Although seeing the cruelty of intolerance & hate is challenging to watch, it does serve as a reminder that how awful the result of intolerance can be which hopefully will inspire people to be more open, accepting and tolerant of ideas that are different than there own in the hopes of making the world a better place for everyone.

Warnings: violence, cruelty and intolerance

DVD Extras:

Introduction by director Alejandro Amenábar (1 minute) in Spanish with English subtitles on the idea behind the film and how it ebbed, flowed & grew over time

Deleted Scenes (7 scenes, 10 minutes) really great collection of deleted scenes, including a gorgeous alternate beginning. I enjoyed many of them and would have loved to see them in the film, but at the over 2 hour run time can see the need to let them go. Great addition to the film though.

Alexandria The Greatest City (48 minutes) Although very interesting addition, this is one of the oddest DVD extra's I've seen so far, as it isn't a documentary on the film Agora but rather the city of Alexandria. It's hosted by Bettany Hughes and is an educational and informative documentary that showcases lots of beautiful and interesting locations, provides context and history through discussions with historians, and tells the history of the city of Alexandra from the creation of, idea and ideals behind it and tragedies that came to it. It does include film clips from Agora and has a brief look at Hypatia, her work, discoveries and inventions.

I'm absolutely beaming that the clear leader for The Scariest Films Are... goes to Paranormal with 41% Fans of the paranormal are in for a treat this week as on this weeks Movie Moxie Podcast I've be discussing supernatural films as a genre and even touching on the differences and definitions of supernatural, paranormal and the occult. The next in the running for results as folks that don't like scary films at all (16%), then a tie between Aliens & Psychological (12% each), Slashers (8%) and ending with another tie at Monsters & Straight Up Horror (4% each).

First up, I think it's important to note that seeing the original Paranormal Activity before trekking into Paranormal Activity 2 is essential. It's not that you won't understand the sequel, but the viewing experience is greatly enhanced by seeing the original first (and I think the original is awesome!), plus content in the first film if referred to and it's just all around better to see it first!

Paranormal Activity 2 follows Kristi (sister of Katie from Paranormal Activity), her husband Dan, their new son Hunter and Dan's daughter Ali who all live in a big house with their dog Abby. There were a few things that I wonder if it was done on purpose to confuse us, like having an Ali & Abby in the same house so when people are talking about them it's hard to tell who they are referring too. Also unless I missed it, baby Hunter seems to go from a babe-in-arms to crawling stage almost overnight which really threw me off. But the real focus of the film the creepy happenings at this families house, as it is a horror film after all!

I'm of two minds on Paranormal Activity 2. On the one hand I think it's a really creative take on a sequel, it surprized me and I thought it was an interesting story - so I'll give it credit for that. But, on the other hand I don't think it's as scary as the original nor does it use the vérité style better than the original. In fact, the vérité style was only very thinly necessary whereas in the original the reason behind it centred the film as a whole. And, worst than that I certainly noticed editing that complete broke my suspension of disbelief on what I was seeing, although I imagine that to combat the practical challenge of having an infant as one of the central characters. That was for some, but not all, of the times that I thought the vérité style wasn't used as effectively. Creating suspense is a tricky thing in this type of film, there has to be enough that isn't happening to get us comfortable and wondering, but enough happening to scare us and engage us. I didn't feel like it was quite the perfect mix here, having too much of nothing happening but it not actually feeling suspenseful. There certainly were scares but they didn't quite hit as hard as I had expected.

As a horror sequel, it's a heck of a lot better than loads of others out there. It's better than I expected, but certainly not as good or as scary as the first. I did feel entertained & engaged while watching, however I was quick to not anything that might have been an inconsistency or oddity. If you were a fan of the first film I think you'll enjoy this one too, but it doesn't have that same je ne sais quoi flavour to it.

Shannon's Overall View:I enjoyed itI'll watch it againI'd recommend it to paranormal film fans who've seen & enjoyed the first Paranormal Activity

Friday, 22 October 2010

In limited release this week we have an eclectic bunch of films to choose from staring with the South Korean action/crime film The Man From Nowhere starring Bin Won (Mother), documentary Tibet in Song and the just released Carlos a 333 minute epic (you read that right, over 5 1/2 hours) crime biography focused the Venezuelan Ilich Ramirez Sanchez.

In wide release this week we have a spooky selection to get you revved up for Halloween with Paranormal Activity 2, a sequel to the indie phenomenal of 2009 Paranormal Activityand I know I'm ready to get scared all over again! We also have Score: A Hockey Musical an uber Canadian film that's was the 2010 Opening Night Gala Film From TIFF, and it bridges our national pastime of hockey with... singing. Yes, it's a musical. Also out this week is the Bollywood release of Jhootha Hi Sahi.

For film festival fans, the Flyaway Film Festival is happening this weekend in Pepin, Wisconsin and fellow film fanatics Andrew James and Matt Gamble will be covering the festival - be sure to check out there coverage over at Row Three and Where the Long Tail Ends! The festival has a great line up, I know I'll be jealous of folks getting to see Gary King's Death of the Dead, documentary Beyond the Myth about the discrimination against pit bulls, and Phasma Ex Machina a narrative film that not only explores questions about how far would you go to bring back the dead, but also will have a panel discussion about the philosophical questions around the issues. Not that's classy. Have fun at the festival guys!

Thursday, 21 October 2010

Earlier this week the results for the 2010 Scream Awards came out and it was interesting as they were broadcasted on Spike on Tuesday, but taped previously so the info on who won started to seep out bit by bit. I ended up not watching the show because it felt anticlimactic knowing some, but not all, of the winners

But I know all is well as the Most Memorable Mutilation when to The Human Centipede (First Sequence), as it should be as that category could literally be founded by that particular film. I was also thrilled to see Breakout Performance - Male go to Tom Hardy for Inception becuase Tom Hardy is a phenomenal actor and I'm really looking forward to seeing more from him, and Inception certainly got him on a lot of different radars. There was a fair amount of love for Inception with it also winning Ultimate Scream, Best Science Fiction Movie, Best Science Fiction Actor (Leonardo Dicaprio), Best Supporting Actor (Joseph Gordon-Levitt) and best Fight Scene but surprzingly not Best Director that went to James Cameron for Avatar or Best Ensemble that went to Zombieland.

The one shoe in that was no surprize was Breakout Performance - Female going to Chloë Grace Moretz for Kick-Ass, everyone just *loved* her in that.

Wednesday, 20 October 2010

On this week's episode of the podcast I have a look at the current releases of Red, Hereafter and Nowhere Boy and continuing genre exploration by tackling one of my oddly least favourite genres: comedy.

Comedy film as defined by Wikipedia "Comedy film is a genre of film in which the main emphasis is on humor. Also, films in this style typically have a happy ending (the black comedy being an exception)."

Humour as defined by Wikipedia: "which is the tendency of particular cognitive experiences to provoke laughter and provide amusement."

Huge list 'o' recommended comedies from fellow film folks:7 Year ItchA Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the ForumAce in the HoleAirplane!Arsenic and Old LaceBall of FireBig Lebowski, TheBottle RocketBox of MoonlightBringing up BabyBurbs, TheCharadeDisorganized CrimeDr. StrangeLoveDuck SoupFear and LoathingFish Called Wanda, AGeneral, TheGhostbustersGildaGoing in StyleGood FairyGremlinsHeaven Can WaitHow to Get Ahead in AdvertisingHumble PieImposter, TheJoe vs the VolcanoKind Hearts and CornetsLadykillersLife of Brian, TheLove and DeathLove at StakeNight at the CometO Brother Where Art ThouRaising ArizonaReel LifeSome Like it HotSpace BallsSpinal TapTamara DreweThe Awful TruthThe EndTin CupTo Have and Have NotTrading PlacesUnfaithfully YoursUsed CarsWhat's Up DocWhen Harry Met SallyYoung FrankensteinZelig

Reason to see: I was happily surprized with Invictus, and looked forward to another Eastwood/Damon film, especially considering this one had a elusive supernatural tone from the trailers.

First up, a bit of a disclaimer for folks going into Hereafter anticipating a Matt Damon-a-thon. It's not, but don't let that deter you as it's a beautiful and understated depiction of after death explorations with a triptych-influenced storytelling style.

The fact that the film follows three separate stories is one of the things I loved about it, as it provides the opportunity to see one issue from several different perspectives from different locations around the world. From the US, to the UK to France it has a lovely worldly flavour, mirroring the universal nature of life and death. It does favour practical over 'woo-woo' which I didn't expect, but again that's a very brave choice for this type of film. It's very centred and realistic, but also open and interpretive.

One of the things I appreciated the most about Hereafter is that it's a non-religious look at the 'what happens after death' question. It's extremely rare to see these issues dealt with from that perspective, and I applaud the bravely it took to do so. I was also suprized to see the representation of a person who isn't interested in using the 'gifts' and the challenges that brings them, in a world about embracing your strengths it's rare to hear a tale of someone who struggles against their strengths. For both of these perspectives I was thrilled to see that overall it has a very open and refreshing take on subject matter we seen before, and I was so happily surprized by these choices.

I really enjoyed the film and even felt like I was exactly the target market for the film: it's smart, worldly, open, interesting and follows regular people who've been in extraordinary situations but who are always accessible. I'm very curious to hear reactions to the film. I really hope people get out to see it and I'd love to hear your perspectives and opinions on it.

Shannon's Overall View:I enjoyed itI'll watch it againI'd recommend it to fans of drama with a open minds and open hearts

16 minutes of preshow including 1 commercial and 6 previews: Due Date, Restless, The Next Three Days, Black Swan, True Grit and Fair Game

The focus of Nowhere Boy is John Lennon early days biopic. That was more than enough to get me interested and in the door, but I knew I was in for a treat as it's directed by Sam Taylor Wood as she also directed the brilliant and award winning short Love You More. In that short, she certainly showcased her adeptness and ability to understand and convey the visceral importance and effect of music during coming of age periods in life, which is a huge theme in Nowhere Boy, and done effectively well yet again.

There is something particularly astonishing about seeing one of the most well known musicians and talents from the perspective of adolescence. You see the roots of joy in music and his life, and also the challenges of everyday life of school, family and teenage rebellion and angst. All throughout it feels entirely genuine and accessible. That's what was the most astonishing to me, how normal it felt although I'm sure at the time it would be rather unusual for a teenage boy to be brought up by his aunt. It sounds like a bit of a contradiction, but it doesn't feel that way when you are watching it. There were also lots of nods to Beatles references than even I as a pedestrian fan could pick out, and I'm sure there is much more embedded for the die hard fans.

The heart of the film is not only in the music but also the family relationships, which seem to be complicated even at the best of times but they are family through and through. It's all brought to life wonderfully by the stellar cast, with Aaron Johnson in the lead a John, who has been quite the chameleon this year as he also played the lead in Kick-Ass. Mark my words, if these are just two of this performances in just one year we are going to be looking to a wonderful array of work from him in the future. We also get fantastic peformanes from Kristen Scott Thomas as Aunt Mimi, Anne-Marie Duff as Julia and Thomas Sangster as a very young Paul.

Overall, it's a wonderful film about the power of life, music, family and love that's beautifully crafted to make you feel, understand and love everyone in it. And I loved every single minute of it.

Shannon's Overall View:I loved itI'll buy itI widely recommend it

14 minutes of preshow including 4 commercials and 4 previews: Barney's Version, The King's Speech, Made in Dagenham and The Next Three Days

This week the box office topper for Canada and North America is Jackass 3D and oh boy I never thought I would be saying that. RED comes in second in both cases and The Social Network holds strong at #3. Despicable Me opens at #1 in the UK and Eat Pray Love tops the Australian charts for the second week running.

Top 20 Movies in North America for the October 15, 2010 weekend1. Jackass 3D *2. RED *3. The Social Network4. Secretariat5. Life As We Know It6. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole7. The Town8. My Soul to Take9. Easy A10. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps11. It's Kind of a Funny Story12. You Again13. Case 3914. N-Secure *15. Devil16. Let Me In17. Alpha and Omega18. Waiting for 'Superman'19. Toy Story 320. Inception

Top 10 Movies in the UK for the October 15, 2010 weekend1. Despicable Me *2. The Social Network *3. Vampires Suck *4. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps5. Life as We Know It6. The Town7. Made in Dagenham8. The Other Guys9. Charlie St. Cloud10. Eat Pray Love

Top 20 Movies in Australia for the October 14 - 17, 2010 weekend1. Eat Pray Love2. The Town *3. Resident Evil: Afterlife *4. Despicable Me5. Let Me In *6. Dinner for Schmucks7. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole8. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps9. Tomorrow, When the War Began10. Easy A11. The Other Guys12. Buried13. The Girl Who Played with Fire14. The Last Airbender15. Diary of a Wimpy Kid16. Cats & Dogs 2: The Revenge of Kitty Galore17. The Sorcerer's Apprentice18. Chloe *19. Inception20. Charlie St. Cloud

The Social Network stays strong in it's second week in the Canadian and North American box office, and we have new debuts in the UK and Australia where Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps and Eat Pray Love top the charts.

Top 20 Movies in Canada for the October 8, 2010 weekend1. The Social Network2. Life As We Know It *3. The Town4. Secretariat *5. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole6. Easy A7. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps8. My Soul to Take *9. StreetDance 3D10. You Again11. Incendies (v.o.f.)12. Let Me In13. Case 3914. Alpha and Omega15. Resident Evil: Afterlife16. Inception17. L'immortel *18. Enthiran19. Fubar II20. Buried

Top 20 Movies in North America for the October 8, 2010 weekend1. The Social Network2. Life As We Know It *3. Secretariat *4. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole5. My Soul to Take *6. The Town7. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps8. Easy A9. Case 3910. You Again11. Let Me In12. It's Kind of a Funny Story *13. Devil14. Alpha and Omega15. Resident Evil: Afterlife16. Waiting for 'Superman'17. Toy Story 318. Inception19. Catfish20. Takers

Top 10 Movies in the UK for the October 8, 2010 weekend1. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps *2. Life As We Know It *3. The Other Guys4. The Town5. The Hole 3D6. Made in Dagenham7. Eat Pray Love8. Buried9. Toy Story 310. Mr Nice *

Top 20 Movies in Australia for the October 7 - 10 2010 weekend1. Eat Pray Love *2. Despicable Me3. Legend of the Guardians: The Owls of Ga'Hoole4. Dinner for Schmucks5. Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps6. The Last Airbender7. Buried *8. Diary of a Wimpy Kid9. Cats & Dogs 2: The Revenge of Kitty Galore10. Easy A11. The Other Guys12. Tomorrow, When the War Began13. The Girl Who Played with Fire14. The Sorcerer's Apprentice 15. Charlie St. Cloud16. Inception17. Boy18. The Tree19. The Kids Are All Right20. Hubble 3D